Hildesheim Cathedral Museum has grown

More room for Cathedral treasure: in the past, the Hildesheim Cathedral Museum could only present a small portion of its inventory. This has now changed.

The visitor entrance of the new museum is located in the Cathedral's foyer which once served as the former Cathedral School.

Until its closure five years ago, the Cathedral Museum was located in the Chapter House located above the Cathedral Sacristy as well as in the adjoining Knights' Hall. With the structural expansion of the building, the exhibition area has increased from 200 square metres to more than 800 square metres. The renovations are based on the design concept of the Cologne-based architectural firm Schilling Architects, which is responsible for the renovation and transformation of the Cathedral and any other building extensions. Reopening celebrations shall be held on 17 April. Starting on Saturday, 18 April the Cathedral Museum shall open to visitors for the first time. To celebrate the reopening, admission will be free on this day as well as on Sunday 19 April.

Visitors can access the museum from the Cathedral Foyer via the Upper Cloister which is now open to the public for the first time ever. The Upper Cloister is already a part of the museum in which only the funerary monuments from the 7th century are showcased. These monuments, from which the oldest date back to the early days of Hildesheim, remind one of the many generations of ecclesiastical dignitaries who influenced and shaped the region.

The new central piece of the Hildesheim Cathedral Museum is the profaned and renovated Anthony's Church which now boasts two floors and has also been expanded towards Hückedahl Street with a new two-storey extensions, otherwise known as the entrance hall. The entrance hall features the rood screen – the Cathedral's former choir screen during the Renaissance – which was stored in Anthony's Church since the war-damaged Cathedral was reconstructed in 1960. A gallery now makes it possible to view the rood screen from an elevated perspective.

The Bernward wall, which was uncovered during the restoration of the cathedral and bears witness to the history of the Domburg and the town development of Hildesheim, was integrated into the new building. It is located in the basement of the new building. A Gothic quatrefoil window that was found on the wall between Anthony's Church and the Knights' Hall and revealed during construction, can also be seen here. The Knights' Hall is the only room of the old Cathedral Museum to have been incorporated into the new museum.

Hildesheim Cathedral

The Hildesheim Cathedral of the Assumption of Mary is one of the oldest episcopal churches in Germany. In term of its architectural history, the building dates back to the 11th century, but its historic origins extend back all the way until the year 815. Discover the Hildesheim Cathedral online.